3 Nephi 12-15
LAST CLASS OF THE YEAR WILL BE APRIL 28
EVENTS IN THE NEW WORLD
“As with all prophecies of the Lord, fulfillment of the Nephite prophecies came with total and unerring certainty.When the Master—hanging on the cross just outside Jerusalem—gave up his life, the American continent experienced great calamities. Speaking about the events recorded in 3 Nephi 8–10, Elder Bruce R. McConkie stated: ‘No single historical event in the whole Book of Mormon account is recorded in so great detail or such extended length as the fulfillment of the signs signifying that Jesus had been lifted up upon the cross and had voluntarily laid down his life for the world.’”
“The geological upheaval and physical changes described in 3 Nephi 8–10, which destroyed much of the Nephite nation, could easily have been caused by a gigantic earthquake with attendant storms, volcanic activity, and aftershocks of incredible proportions.The similarities in the descriptions of other documented catastrophes, such as the Mount St. Helen’s disaster in 1980, to the geological upheaval and darkness recorded in 3 Nephi are striking. Most aspects of the geological changes in 3 Nephi can be accommodated by modern earthquake models through the theory of plate tectonics, and the very nature of earthquake and volcanic activity typical of the South and Central America is consistent with the whole set of phenomena recorded in 3 Nephi. Modern geophysical and geological theories support the 3 Nephi events as realities and not—as some critics report— fabricated myths.”
Alvin K. Benson, https://archive.bookofmormoncentral.org/content/geological-upheaval-and- darkness-3-nephi-8-10
THE NUMBER THREE
The number three indicates divine wholeness, completeness, perfection. It is used as a divine stamp of fulfillment.
EVENTS IN THE NEW WORLD
“A close doctrinal analysis of divine violence stemming from 3 Nephi (but extending into other passages in LDS scripture) can push us in discomforting ways. However, based on the grief and lament that accompanies such divine violence, these occurrences likewise were also disturbing and discomforting to Jesus Christ and, by extension, our Heavenly Parents. Likewise, the grief and lamenting that Jesus declares over the destruction that he claims responsibility for pushes back against the adoption of traditional Christian notions of an omnipotent, inscrutable, and impassable God. Rather, these sections force us to recognize a relational quality inherent in the nature of God and Christ, as passable, emotional, and ultimately invested beings in the relationships they have built with mortals and the natural world.Yet, they are at the same time committed to specific lines of righteousness and may act violently in response to extreme human violence which steps beyond the ethical or moral stipulations of their commandments.As portrayed in 3 Nephi, our Lord may do so reluctantly and with pain and tears, but he will do so.”
“In the 3 Nephi account, Mormon presents the manifestations of Jesus to the Nephites with inherent differences in qualities: the destruction is accomplished by impersonal, natural, and agential or intermediate forces, while the mercy and love of God are presented personally, intimately, and directly.This contrast between delegated justice and personalized mercy brings to the fore that God would rather give the latter. In terms of literary structure, the fact that all of the three manifestations stress his mercy bespeaks the notion that God prefers merciful interaction. But the first manifestation —the destruction—is a means of emphasizing that God is willing to enact violence if necessitated by justice and the blood of the righteous crying out to him to put a stop to further human violence.”
“God’s use of violence, inevitable in a violent world, is intended to subvert human violence in order to bring the creation along to a point where violence is no more. In other words, whenever God acts violently, he does so to not only stop or punish human violence, but also does so in a way that promotes, teaches, or ensures a move of humankind generally away from such violence.”
“The image of the hen is definitely a deliberate symbolic choice to present the motherly and feminine love or charity that God exhibits and the protection he desires for his children.However, Jesus could have chosen from a nearly infinite array of animal examples or other imagery to get such a point across. By choosing a hen explicitly (and not some other potentially violent motherly image—e.g. a bear or lion), the lament may also be seen as an implicit declaration that he greatly regrets or has sincere pain because of the violence he has had to enact.The imagery highlights how he would vastly prefer to protect and deliver his children non-violently, if they would but hearken and accept such.Thus, it is not just a statement that God will protect his children, but also a statement about how he prefers to manifest that protection.“How oft have I . . . how oft would I . . . how oft will I gather you [nonviolently],” he can be seen declaring.”
Andrew C. Smith, https://rsc.byu.edu/vol-19-no-2-2018/dealing-difficulty-scripture-divine-violence-book-mormon
BROKEN HEART AND CONTRITE SPIRIT
“The Lord seems to really be saying: Beginning today you will no longer offer animal or any other sacrifice at an altar, because the saving act they symbolized has been accomplished by me.Therefore, I will no longer accept them as legitimate expressions of your faith and symbols of salvation (9:19).You will continue to live the law of sacrifice and will demonstrate this as you voluntarily offer to me your broken heart. Only with such an offering (as was also true before my redeeming mission) can you be sanctified (9:20).
Thus, the first sentence in 3 Nephi 9:20 is understood to mean ‘and ye shall [continue to] offer for a sacrifice unto me a broken heart and a contrite spirit,’ not ‘and ye shall [begin to] offer for a [new] sacrifice unto me a broken heart and a contrite spirit.
Thus, with the elimination of the strong, visual, external evidence of commitment to God provided by an animal offering, the Lord gave extra and renewed emphasis in 3 Nephi 9:20 to the offering of a broken heart as another gospel dispensation was beginning.”
Dana M. Pike,“3 Nephi 9: 19–20:The Offering of a Broken Heart,” in Third Nephi:An Incomparable Scripture, eds. Gaye Strathearn and Andrew C. Skinner (Salt Lake City; Provo, UT: Deseret Book and Maxwell Institute, 2012).
BROKEN HEART AND CONTRITE SPIRIT
“The word in the Greek text of the Old Testament (Ps. 51:17) suntribo, meaning ‘broken,’ as in the term ‘broken heart,’ means to be shattered, smashed, or ground into pieces, signifying that the will of the natural man yields to the Lord’s reshaping as he becomes a new creature in Christ. ‘Contrite’ shares similar meanings and connotes remorse for sin.Thus the term ‘broken heart and contrite spirit’ suggests a repentant state of malleability, a sensitivity to one’s fallen and dependent condition, and a willingness to submit to the Lord’s purposes.
The broken heart precedes rending the veil of unbelief and increased spiritual knowledge.The Savior was anointed to ‘bind up the brokenhearted.’ ”
M Catherine Thomas, Book of Mormon Reference Companion
THE SAVIOR’S WORDS TO HIS PEOPLE
“Before speaking a word, the Savior ‘stretched forth his hand’ (3 Nephi 11:9) a gesture that often comes before a person speaks important words in the Book of Mormon.The people were confused before this gesture (3 Nephi 11:8), but after making this gesture and introducing Himself, the people ‘fell to the earth’ and ‘remembered’ (3 Nephi 11:12).Among some early Christians, the raising of the hand(s) was known as Christ’s ‘sign.’”
https://knowhy.bookofmormoncentral.org/knowhy/what-can-we-learn-from-the-saviors-first-words-at-bountiful#footnote2_zo1lbb5
THE SAVIOR’S WORDS TO HIS PEOPLE
“Of all the messages that could come from the scroll of eternity, what was the declaration? ... Fifty-six words.The essence of his earthly mission. Obedience and loyalty to the will of the Father, however bitter the cup or painful the price.That is a lesson he would teach the Nephites again and again during the three days he would be with them. By obedience and sacrifice, by humility and purity, by unflagging determination to glorify the Father, Christ was himself glorified. In complete devotion to the Father’s will, Christ had become the light and the life of the world.”
Jeffrey R. Holland, Christ and the New Covenant, 251
JESUS’ MINISTRY AMONG THE NEPHITES
“The faithful in the Book of Mormon looked forward to the day when Christ would offer himself as sacrifice in their behalf. However, having no point of reference with regard to crucifixion in their own history, they may not have had a clear understanding of what such a death entailed. Nephi explained that the Lord speaks to us “according to our language, unto our understanding” (2 Nephi 31:3). Correspondingly, cultural context directly impacts the way people interpret manifestations of the divine. Thus, when Christ appeared to the Nephites, he may have been communicating with them according to their cultural language when he invited them to come and feel for themselves the wounds in his flesh. He bade them first to thrust their hands into his side, and secondarily to feel the prints in his hands and feet (3 Nephi 11:14). This contrasts with his appearance to his apostles in Jerusalem after his resurrection. Among them, he invited them to touch solely his hands and feet (Luke 24:39–40).24 Why the difference? To a people steeped in Mesoamerican culture, the sign that a person had been ritually sacrificed would have been an incision on their side — suggesting they had had their hearts removed — whereas for the people of Jerusalem in the first century, the wounds that would indicate someone had been sacrificed would have been in the hands and the feet — the marks of crucifixion.”
Mark Allen Wright, https://journal.interpreterfoundation.org/axes-mundi-ritual-complexes-in-mesoamerica-and- the-book-of-mormon/
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